Congress leaders call for speeding up Telangana process

New Delhi/Hyderabad, Aug 27 (IANS) Congress party leaders from Telangana Tuesday urged the Antony committee to speed up the process for formation of separate Telangana state with Hyderabad as its capital.

Opposing the demand for union territory status to Hyderabad, the leaders said this would not be acceptable to people of Telangana as the city is an integral part of the region.

Party leaders including central minister S. Jaipal Reddy and MPs met the four-member panel in the national capital Tuesday night to underline the need for taking immediate measures to take forward the July 30 decision of Congress Working Committee (CWC).

This is the second time that Telangana leaders have met the panel, constituted by the party for consultations following the CWC decision. Congress general secretary and incharge of party affairs in Andhra Pradesh, Digvijaya Singh, told reporters that the committee would next meet on Sep 3.

He said while the committee was constituted for consultations with the Congress legislators, MPs and ministers, it had also received request from non-political groups.

Digvijaya said the Congress took a decision on Telangana after widest consultation over the last few years. He criticized Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and YSR Congress for going back on their word and creating a situation after Congress took a unilateral decision.

"The decision for bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh was supported by TDP, YSR Congress and BJP. It was Congress which took a decision after taking their views into consideration and after consulting them," he said.

He also found fault with Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L. K. Advani for stating that Congress did not hold consultations.

Congress MP Madhu Yaskhi told reporters after the meeting that Telangana state would definitely become a reality. He appealed to people of Telangana to exercise restraint despite provocation by Seemandhra leaders and employees.

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